Ask anyone who has attempted to make change in Sri Lanka, especially reforms and they would tell you that the Sri Lankan bureaucracy excels in few areas, strangling ideas, shelving plans and burying forward momentum of reforms. Policy ideas and reforms are eaten up by the Sri Lankan bureaucratic behemoth and then lost to the sands of time. One such reform or update of a key piece of sovereign regulations that has been lost in our bureaucratic jungle, is the Standard Operational Procedure (SOP) for diplomatic clearance of ships, aircraft and unmanned systems, which received cabinet approval in June this year.  Even though the SOP was approved by the Cabinet nearly three months ago, the set of regulations has not yet come into effect (14).

Why the body of regulations which was approved by the Cabinet has not come into effect, has raised concerns in the local security establishment and among some diplomatic missions who are closely following how Sri Lanka enforces its sovereign control of the island nation’s maritime domain and airspace. 

The current SOP which guides how diplomatic clearance is given to visiting foreign vessels and aircraft, both military and civil, has been in effect since 2016. Sri Lanka’s clumsy handling of the Chinese satellite tracking vessel Yuan Wang – 5, in August 2022, triggered the lethargic foreign policy and security establishment to wake up from its slumber and take note of their shortcomings. Under strong international pressures from ‘friends’ and ‘partners’ who both objected to the Chinese vessel being given permission to visit the Hambantota International Port (HIP), which has already be labelled by some enthusiastic western and regional press as a ‘Chinese military base’, Sri Lanka decided to review its existing SOP. It is reliably learnt that a draft of the SOP has been shared with some ‘friends’, and ‘partnering’ countries, to get their feedback. Why Sri Lanka felt the need to share a draft, or what warranted such consultation, remains elusive.

Nevertheless, irrespective of feedback, the cabinet approved SOP, which should have been announced and put into effect in July/August, remains unimplemented. Neither the Ministry of Foreign Affairs nor the Ministry of Defence were able to give an exact date of the SOP being rolled out / come into effect. While the Sri Lankan state machinery fumbles in the dark with what should have been a key foreign policy matter due to its implications on Sri Lanka’s sovereignty, another Chinese Marine Research Vessel (MSR’s as the Government is fond of calling them) nears Sri Lanka, with no revised SOP in place. One year on, has Sri Lanka not learned anything from the diplomatic tensions of last year? When will the bureaucracy finally get their act together, work in unison and deliver on time? Many Sri Lankans may say, let’s not hold our breath for that to happen! In a recent interview with The Daily Morning, the Australian High Commissioner to Colombo, said that Sri Lanka needs to assert its sovereignty and work within international laws. We hope the policymakers in Colombo, and the cogs in the bureaucracy are listening? Perhaps they (Policymakers and bureaucrats) will respond better to the idea, when it comes from a foreigner, than when it comes from domestic foreign policy and security experts, which is often the case. If Sri Lanka is to assert its sovereign control over such ship and aircraft visits, a robust SOP, enforcement and compliance checking mechanism is needed, today.  

Speaking of taking over the IORA Chairpersonship, the Foreign Minister said that Sri Lanka did not want great power rivalry in the Indian Ocean and called for a rules-based order for the region. However, the great power rivalry is already here in the Indian Ocean. And Sri Lanka is facing the pressure from being put in that vise. With growing geopolitical tensions in the Indian Ocean, a politically weak Sri Lanka that is on its knees, economically speaking, is in a vulnerable position. Today, Sri Lanka can be more easily coerced to make decisions which are not in her best interest, since the Island state is essentially bankrupt and at the mercy of many countries. As such, Sri Lanka’s national interest - with prioritising its peoples’ interest, creating a safe, secure and prosperous future for our children - has come under threat today due to our own mistakes. It is incumbent on those who are in power, and the state officials who serve the public, to get their act together and work for Sri Lanka’s interest, now. Sri Lanka must swiftly move now to assert her sovereign rights. If not today, when?